Living in Tachikawa gives you so many options for restaurants. Not just Japanese but also other food from overseas.
I tend to go back to the same restaurant over and over again even if I know I have many other choices. Let me tell you some of them so that you can see where are the restaurants that locals keep going back to.

“Khao Man Gai Bazzar” (カオマンガイバザール）is one of the Thai food restaurant that I go, especially when I feel like eating a lot. You almost never see all-you-can-eat Thai food but this restaurant does that for lunch on weekdays. You choose a menu of your favor and you can add all-you-can-eat Thai curry and other dishes for an additional 200 yen. The standard menu that you can choose from is priced around 800 to 1000 yen.
I was surprised to see that Jasmin rice is also refillable. Japanese rice is usually very filling and people tend to eat less amount nowadays but Jasmin rice is something I can eat a lot without feeling bad in my stomach afterward. Usually, in Japan, any rice other than Japanese rice is very expensive because the government put an insane amount of tax to protect the Japanese rice producers in the country. Any rice imported from Thai land, for example, is originally very affordable but it’s 200-300% more expensive if you try to purchase in Japan.
Generally speaking, all-you-can-eat Jasmin rice does not make sense in Japan. Well but hey, this restaurant does it and I’m not complaining. Makes me worried if they are making enough money to sustain their business.
I would recommend going to this restaurant on Tuesdays because they are doing a discount and this additional 200 yen is free which is amazing.

Unlike any other restaurants, the lunch buffet is as great as the food on the menu. There are salads, soup and green curry and refillable Jasmin rice.

I usually eat too much coming to this place for lunch. It’s hard to resist when the food is this good. I usually tell myself it’s ok because I get to eat a lot of vegetables too.
This ”Khao Man Gai Bazaar” is located right in between Bic Camera and Donki on the small back street. It’s very easy to miss this street so make sure to go with Google Map.

Everyone likes BBQ. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you are. It is such a natural way for people to gather around to spend some good time. What if I tell you, though, that doing BBQ in your backyard is something really hard to do in Tokyo?
It’s really disappointing to know that there are not many space where you can do BBQ. Of course, it is no problem to do it in your backyard but not many houses have enough space especially at the center of Tokyo.

Doing BBQ to relax, not to hustle

The most popular and practical ways for people to BBQ is to go to a BBQ site. Toyosu area, for example, is known as major BBQ site for people living in the city. It’s accessible for many people thanks to its location and vast spaces are available because this area is a landfill and it’s not as densely populated as other places. In this kind of place, BBQ is offered as a service where you pay for food and drinks prepared by service providers. It makes some sense because you do not have to do grocery shopping in advance or bring all the heavy stuff to the BBQ site. Not to mention, preparing for BBQ and cleaning up takes so much effort as well.
I do not mind this kind of arranged BBQ but I prefer the easygoing one that you do in your backyard.
First of all, a backyard BBQ is cheap. It is kind of obvious but signing up for BBQ service tends to get very expensive compared to a backyard BBQ. In my opinion, there’s no point in organizing BBQ in the first place if it gets more expensive than eating good food at some restaurants outside. A backyard BBQ is a perfect opportunity to go to one of the whole sale supermarkets. You might think of Seiyu, Walmart or Costco kind of supermarket but there are actually many brands. Nikuno Hanamasa (肉のハナマサ), Gyomu-super (業務スーパー), Amica (アミカ), are the brands known as whole sale stores. You’ll be surprised how much discount you get to have in these supermarkets.
Then, backyard BBQ leave you or other people with rooms for improvising and surprises. When we do BBQ in Oakhouse Kichijoji 2, more than enough people bring some good food. Marinated meat is one of the popular choices. Grilling with charcoals always comes in good results but grilling marinated meat makes things even better.

Some people bring cheese, breads, even homemade cakes. Make the BBQ potluck style, so that your guests bring so much more interesting food than what you find in BBQ sites in Toyosu.

The reason I love backyard BBQs in Kichijoji 2 is because it’s easy to prepare and clean. I already mentioned that signing up for BBQ services is great because you do not need any preparation or clean-ups. I agree but it’s a different story if it’s a BBQ at the back of a share house.
Oakhouse Kichijoji 2 has such a big backyard where more than a dozen people can stay and spend some good time in summer. The big kitchen is inside the building which means it’s so much easier to clean or prepare BBQ. You do need some kind of washing space if you’re doing a BBQ outside. I saw many BBQ pits available in public parks in Hawaii. I hope there are pits like that in Tokyo as well but unfortunately I have never seen such things in parks in Tokyo.
These photos below are the ones taken when we did BBQ on the 26th of May. May is one of the best month to do BBQ outside. It’s not too cold or too hot and it’s right before the rainy season starts.

The Oakhouse manager actually gave us a BBQ grill for the community when we told that we were planning a BBQ. We just got a charcoal and a firestarter.

So many people brought so many food on that night. Even some fruits were served toward the end of the BBQ and it was really good. This is the kind of BBQ that I like. I’m pretty sure some people bring more expensive food to share but that’s okay. This kind of selfless act bonds people in the community. It’s beautiful if you think about it. Every time there’s a party some people want to share so much with others without asking for any money. People who received this kindness brings something at the next party to reciprocate, and this is an endless cycle.

What makes a good community? I think it’s about bringing slightly more food to share when you don’t even know who is coming to the party.